Yūgi
by SheMeHerJay
Summary: AU. In which Yami is a single father, determined to never let another woman rip his heart to shreds again. And Yūgi is a young nurse, afraid to love after a very bad experience in the past. Rating is subject to change.
1. Chapter 1

**Yūgi**

 **By: SheMeHerJay**

 **Chapter One**

* * *

i do not own yu-gi-oh!.

* * *

"Kisara's birthday party is this weekend," the brown hair, blue eyed man commented to break the silence between himself and his cousin. The other man clearly had something on his mind at the moment. He was usually a lot more talkative than this. "Perhaps you should bring Hikari and allow her to burn off some of that energy she has. It would do you some good. You've clearly got a lot more than the numbers for Kaiba Corp. on your mind right now. Is everything alright, Yami?"

The other man, Yami, sighed heavily before responding to his cousin's question, "I'm fine, it's just that Hikari asked me when she would have another mother this morning as I was taking her to school. The question was so out of the blue that I couldn't even give her any form of an answer. I'm pretty sure she thinks that I'm angry with her because I didn't say a word. What should I do, Seto? I can't have my daughter thinking that I hate her for asking me a question. One that she has every right to ask at that."

Seto, the brown haired, blue eyed man shook his head. He could see why Yami was so distracted. "You definitely need to sit her down and talk to her about this situation, Yami. I went through a similar situation with Kisara last year. For four years after Setsuna died, Kisara hadn't had a mother in her life at all. She had asked me why she didn't have a mother like all the rest of her friends did. I couldn't answer her right away but when I did, she understood the situation. Then, two months after we had that whole conversation, Joey fell into my lap, literally. Of course, she's six years younger than I am but she's a breath of fresh air; no matter how infuriating she can get at times. Kisara loves her as well. She even told me that it was about time that I found someone to love us again. Perhaps you should try the same and attempt dating again as well, Yami. Maybe someone without children of her own. And perhaps a few years younger as well. It would be good for both you and Hikari." He stood, placing a few bills on the table to cover their lunch. "Think about it."

Then he turned and made his way out of the restaurant, leaving Yami to think about what he said. On one hand, Seto was absolutely right. It had already been four years since his divorce from Hana had been finalized and he won full custody of their daughter. On the other hand, he didn't want to go through that heartbreak again with another woman. After what Hana did to him, he had vowed that he would never let another woman get that close to him again to where she could hurt not only him, but now his daughter as well.

 _But it wouldn't hurt to try_ , Yami thought to himself as he grabbed his phone and keys then stood from his seat; pulling his blazer over his broad shoulders as he made his way out of the establishment. _Maybe Seto is right about this. Perhaps it is time that I try dating again. A few evenings out with a few women couldn't hurt anything._

He nodded to himself before stepping into the black 2016 Bentley Flying Spur that was parked in the lot. Starting the car, he backed out before heading off back to the main Kaiba Corp. office. Perhaps he could try joining one of those dating sites? It was, after all, how his good friend Bakura met his wife. So maybe it could work for him too?

…

"Hey Yūg? Ya home," a tall sandy blonde woman called out as she walked into the apartment she shared with her best friend; a little white haired girl holding on to her hand. "Yūgi? Hey Yūgi I have someone here that wants to see ya!"

"I'm in my bedroom Joey," the voice of her roommate called out to the duo.

"C'mon, let's go surprise your Aunt Yūgi, Kisara," Joey, the sandy blonde, said looking down at the white haired child who still held her hand.

"Okay," the little girl chimed.

Together they made their way to the bedroom where they found Yūgi, a young woman with waist length curly tri-coloured hair, sitting on her bed with her laptop in her lap. She glanced up when she heard them come in, a bright smile gracing her features. "Kisara! Hi! It's so good to see you again."

"You too Aunt Yūgi," Kisara said crawling up on the bed and taking a seat beside her. She glanced at the computer screen, noting that Yūgi had been watching a movie on Netflix before they had come in. "Whatcha watchin' Auntie? This movie looks interesting."

"It's called "Hush"," Yūgi explained. "It's about an author that got sick when she was thirteen and lost her hearing. Now she lives alone in the woods and this guy is after her so she has to fight to stay alive. I'd let you watch it with me but I'm not sure your father would approve."

"Oh, okay," Kisara said as she watched Yūgi close out of the movie and shut her laptop.

She giggled when she was grabbed and placed in the young woman's lap. "So, what brings you guys all the way out here today? Anything special going on?"

"I was just picking Kisara up for Seto but she asked to stop by because she wanted to tell you something," Joey answered. "Go on Kisara and ask your Aunt Yūgi what you asked me in the car earlier. I told ya it would be something you had to ask her about."

Kisara nodded her head before turning to look up at the tri-colour haired woman. "My birthday is this weekend Aunt Yūgi and I was wondering if you would like to come to my party this Sunday? I already asked Daddy and he's okay with you being there. So will you please come?"

Yūgi smiled, hugging the little girl close to her chest. "Of course I'll be there Kisara. Sunday just so happens to start my two-week vacation from the hospital so I'll definitely be there."

"Yay! Thank you Aunt Yūgi," Kisara chimed happily. "Thank you! Now I get to introduce you to my cousin and her Daddy and all my friends because you're the coolest Aunt around. This is going to be lots of fun. We're going to have a great time."

"I'm sure that we will," Yūgi agreed, laughing lightly at the hyperactive child. "And I'll have an extra special present for you to open too."

"Ooh, really," Kisara asked. That had gotten her attention, "What is it?"

"I can't tell you that silly," Yūgi chuckled, hugging the little girl again. "It's a surprise for your birthday. You can't know what it is right now. That's why it's called a surprise."

"But Sunday is such a long way away," Kisara groaned. "How come you can't tell me what it is? I promise I'll still act surprised when I open it."

"No can do little one," Yūgi said smiling kindly. "You'll have to wait. But, I can tell you that you're going to love your surprise. I promise."

"Yay," Kisara grinned, hugging the woman's waist tightly.

"Hey Kisara, do you mind going in the living room and watching cartoons for a little bit," Joey said suddenly. "I need to talk to your Aunt Yūgi about grown up stuff for a little bit then we'll be heading out to take you home."

Kisara blinked at the sudden request before she nodded, "Okay!"

Carefully, she slipped from Yūgi's lap before heading to the living room. Joey closed the door behind her before joining the other woman on the bed. "So, have you thought about what I said the other day?"

"Joey I don't know…" Yūgi said; clearly hesitant when it came to talking about the subject. "What if this doesn't work?"

"Oh for Pete's sake Yūg," Joey said rolling her eyes. "It's been six years since that douche bag left ya for that model broad. You need to get back out there and start datin' again. You're way too awesome of a person to be forever alone and you know it."

"Yes but after all that drama with Jiro back then, I don't think I'll ever be able to put my all into a relationship like that again," Yūgi explained. "He broke my heart. The last thing I want is to go through that all over again."

"I get that Yūg, I really do," Joey admitted, placing a hand on her childhood friend's shoulder. "I felt that way for a long time until I met Kaiba. He's a great guy, and his daughter is a dream come true. And if I can get lucky like that, then you for damn sure can as well." She stood, her hand still resting on the other woman's shoulder. "just think about it Yug. It can't hurt anything."

Then she left, gathering Kisara along the way. For a while, Yūgi sat there, pondering over everything that Joey had said. She did make a very valid point. It had already been over six years since that breakup. Maybe it was time for her to face her fear, even if she only went on a few dates.

Getting up from her seat on the bed, she made her way to the front door and locked it before turning to head into the living room. Picking up the remote, she turned the TV off before heading back into her bedroom.

"Maybe I'll join one of those dating sites just for fun," she laughed to herself. "Just to see what eligible bachelors there are around Domino City."

Taking a seat on the bed again, she grabbed her laptop and opened it before typing in the URL for Match. Maybe she could find a few decent men on here. But she didn't set her hopes too high. The last thing she needed was to be disappointed when everyone she came across just wanted one thing and one thing only. And that was to get into her pants.

…

This was the worse idea he could have ever come up with in the history of ideas he had, had. "I'm going to kill Seto for talking me into trying to date again."

He continued to scroll through the list of women that Match had recommended for him, his faith in finding a suitable date waning with each passing profile… until he landed on one particular profile. "Yūgi Mutou" was the name under the profile picture. He quickly read over the biography that had been written, located just underneath her photo before glancing at said photo once again. She was definitely beautiful; her amethyst eyes were the first thing that caught his attention. She was also very interesting from what he read on her biography despite her being a few years younger than he was but that was okay. Perhaps he would send her a message before turning in for the night.

Lithe fingers flew across the keys of his keyboard, typing up an introductory message. He proofread it several times, taking out things he felt were unnecessary and adding others that he thought she might be interested in knowing. After twenty minutes of editing and re-editing, he sent off the message before shutting his computer down. He grabbed his phone as he stood from his seat and made his way to his bedroom as he flipped through the application store, easily finding the Match app and downloading it to his phone.

Finished with the download, he placed the phone on his nightstand before heading to the bathroom for a much needed shower. He returned to his room twenty minutes later, completely ready for bed. Slipping into the soft Egyptian Cotton sheets of his bed, he grabbed his phone and opened the application, hoping to see a reply back from Yūgi once he signed into his account. He was surprised when he saw a message from the woman in question pop up as soon as he opened his inbox.

He opened it, leaning back on his pillows as he read it aloud.

"Hello Yami, a pleasure to make your acquaintance," he read; an arm coming to rest behind his head. He smiled at some of the information she decided to share with him. _Age twenty-eight, registered nurse, no children but definitely wants kids in the future._ It wasn't until the end of her message that he was surprised once again when she provided him with her email, letting him know that she would love to keep in touch.

"Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all," Yami commented to himself as he added her email to his contacts list. "I'll email her tomorrow to set up an evening out. We'll see how things go."

…

She hadn't been a member on the site for more than an hour before twelve new messages flooded her inbox. Amethyst eyes rolled at all the lame attempts at trying to come on to her. It wasn't until she got to last message that her interest was piqued. Reading it over first, she then clicked on his profile.

He was attractive, she noticed. Very attractive. And he seemed to be quite well off if the car that was in the background of his photo which consisted of himself and little girl that she figured had to be the daughter he mentioned in his message, was anything to go by. She couldn't help but notice how adorable the child was and how much she really looked like her father.

"This wasn't a bad idea after all," Yūgi murmured to herself as she clicked back to his message. She quickly typed up her reply, adding her email to the message for them to keep in contact. There was no telling how often she would be on this thing after all. And she didn't want to give out her number to a complete stranger immediately. She'd prefer to get to know him first before they worked their way to that step. Finished with her reply, she sent it off. "And… sent. Now to get ready for bed. That ten-hour shift isn't going to work itself."

Shutting her laptop down, she placed it on her nightstand before getting up to get her things ready for tomorrow before preparing for bed.

* * *

 **And that my darlings, concludes the first chapter of "Yūgi". Honestly the inspiration for this story came from the song "Nikki" by The Dream. This is what happens when I sit at work and listen to all my music on iTunes that I didn't know I had lmfao.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Yūgi**

 **By: SheMeHerJay**

 **Chapter Two**

* * *

i do not own yu-gi-oh!.

* * *

"Hikari," Yami whispered as he kneeled down beside his slumbering daughter who was wrapped from head to toe in her sheets. "C'mon Hikari, it's time to wake up. Kisara's birthday party is today. Don't you want to go and have fun with your cousin?"

"Five more minutes Daddy," Hikari murmured sleepily, further wrapping herself in her sheets as she turned over on her other side; her back to her father. "I'll get up then."

"That won't work Hikari," Yami chuckled, gently running a hand through his daughter's exposed tri-coloured hair. "It's already twelve-thirty, Kisara's party starts in an hour and a half. You don't want to be late do you?"

That got her attention. Hikari's eyes opened immediately, "Why didn't you tell me that sooner?! We can't be late, Daddy!"

"I tried to tell you, silly girl," Yami said, a chuckle reverberating in his chest as he watched her run about her room like a chicken with it's head cut off, quickly trying to get dressed. He really hoped she didn't trip over her clothes and hit her head. "You were the one that was asking for five more minutes of sleep."

The six-year-old stopped mid-stride, turning to glare at her father; her hands coming to rest on her tiny hips. "If you had told me that in the first place I wouldn't have asked for five more minutes Daddy, duh."

"The amount of sass that you possess is not okay with me." She was fixed with his crimson glare, one that told her she was getting a little out of hand with the way she was talking to him. Her little face faltered, looking away from her father before he continued. "You're six, not sixteen, alright?"

"Sorry Daddy," Hikari apologized.

"It's alright, now hurry and finish getting dressed," Yami said ruffling her hair before she swatted his hand away again. "You don't want to be late for Kisara's party, remember?"

If Hikari had been born a boy, she would have been an exact carbon copy of her father with the face that she had pulled at his comment just now. Yami was practically seeing himself at six again. And he wasn't sure if he should be amused or scared shitless. "Just hurry and get ready to go. We're leaving in less than an hour."

"Daddy, I can't get dressed with you in here," Hikari said folding her arms over her chest. "You have to get out so that I can get dressed!"

Yami snorted, turning to make his way out of the room as he called over his shoulder, "Sure thing kiddo. Just finish getting ready. I'll be waiting for you downstairs."

"Okay Daddy," Hikari said as she disappeared into her closet and her bedroom door closed behind her father.

He released the doorknob, making his way down the hall as he fished his iPhone 6s plus from his pocket, turning on the screen to see a new message from Yūgi. In the five days that followed their first messages over Match, they had graduated from emails to text messaging one another as of Saturday evening. She had mentioned that she felt comfortable giving him her cell number around seven the night before and they had been text messaging back and forth ever since. She had even picked up the accidental phone call when he had pocket dialed her after saving her number to his contacts.

Yami had been certain that she had blushed when he told her that she had a beautiful voice.

He read over her text message before giving a quick reply.

 _Heading out with Hikari. Her cousin's birthday is today and we promised we would attend the party. How about yourself?_

Turning off the screen again, he slipped the phone back into the back pocket of his jeans as he entered his home office. Before they left, he did have a few things to go over for the company so that they were ready for the next day.

…

Yūgi was running late. She was supposed to have left for the Kaiba Mansion fifteen minutes before. But she had ended up getting distracted by talking with Yami, discussing the plans that they both had for the day when she should have been doing her hair. Now, if she didn't leave within the next ten minutes, she'd be late to Kisara's party and that wouldn't do.

An irritated sigh escaped her grasp as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. Of all the days for her hair to not cooperate, today was the last day to do so.

"C'mon ponytail, work with me here," the young nurse grumbled as she attempted once again to wrap her long, multi-coloured hair into a tight ponytail. She prayed to the Gods above that her hair tie didn't snap on her again. The first two times had already hurt like hell. A third time would make her give up completely and say "fuck it". Several more loops of the tie were added before she was finally finished. "Success! Freakin' finally!"

After making a few quick adjustments to her makeup, Yūgi left her bathroom; returning to her bedroom. She quickly grabbed her handbag, keys, cellphone, and Kisara's birthday present before leaving; locking the front door behind her.

She flounced down the stairs that led from her apartment to the black 2014 Lexus IS 350 that was parked in her space. She pressed the unlock button on her keys as she approached, opening the driver's door before opening it and stepping inside the vehicle. She placed her bag and Kisara's present in the passenger's seat before starting the car and backing out of her parking space. Seconds later, after checking her mirrors, she drove off in the direction of the Kaiba Mansion where the party was to be held.

…

"C'mon Hikari," Yami called from the base of the stairs. "We have to get going or we're really going to be late to Kisara's party."

"Coming Daddy," Hikari called back before she appeared at the top of the stairs dressed in a white tank top with a light pink vest covering her shoulders; an off white waist belt wrapped around her tiny waist. Thigh length denim shorts covered her bottom half; the outfit matched with a pair of white gladiator sandals. "How do I look Daddy?"

"You look beautiful," Yami chuckled, waving for her to come down the steps. She did, stopping by her father's side who grabbed her hand. "Let's go. Hopefully we don't get stuck in traffic."

"Daddy Uncle Seto lives fifteen minutes away from us," Hikari pointed out. "And it's only one twenty. We'll be okay even if we get caught in traffic."

"If you say so," Yami acknowledged as he led her out of their home; locking the door behind him. Hikari was quick to run to the sleek, black 2015 Range Rover Sport parked next to his Bentley. His brow irked. "You want to take the Range Rover today?"

"Yep! C'mon Daddy, we gotta go," Hikari said opening the back driver's door before hopping into the SUV.

Yami chuckled as the door shut behind her before getting into the driver's seat, placing the gift he had been holding in his hands in the passenger's seat. He started the vehicle, putting it in reverse before backing out of the driveway and shooting off down the road towards Seto's home; Hikari happily chattering away about her plans for the day in the back seat.

"I can't wait for Kisara to see the present that we got her," Hikari chimed happily. "She's gonna like it so much! I wonder what Uncle Seto and Miss Joey got for her? And Miss Joey's friend. I forgot her name, Kisara did say it once. I think it started with a Y." She shrugged, "I dunno."

"We'll find out soon enough," Yami commented as they continued down the road in the direction of the Kaiba Mansion, "Won't we?'

"Yep!"

…

Yūgi pulled into the driveway of her best friend's beau, completely taken by surprise by the many expensive, fancy cars that were parked in the driveway. She was pretty sure that they all, if not most of them, belonged to Seto. _I guess that's what comes with owning a multi-billion-dollar company._

She cut the ignition, reaching over to grab her bag and Kisara's present before she opened the door and stepped out of the car. She pushed it shut with her hip, adjusting her bag on her shoulder before she made her way to the front door. A quick knock was placed on the door before she stepped back, waiting for someone to answer. It didn't take long though, because seconds later the front door flung opened to reveal the adorable blue eyed, white haired girl of the hour who was quick to glomp her waist, snuggling into her abdomen.

"I'm so glad that you came Aunt Yūgi! I didn't think you would show up! I know you're very busy a lot of the time," Kisara said; hugging the woman's waist a bit tighter. "You could have been called to the hospital at any minute and then you wouldn't have been able to make it."

Yūgi couldn't help the gentle smile that graced her features as she ran her fingers through the silky strands of silver-white hair. "Silly girl, of course I was going to be here. I promised you that I would come didn't I? And when I make a promise, I always keep it. Now c'mon, let's get inside."

Kisara nodded happily as her grip around the tri-colour haired woman's waist released itself and she stepped to the side, "Momma Joey is in the kitchen making the finger sandwiches for the party if you want to help her! She keeps shoving Daddy out of the kitchen cos he's not very good at putting sandwiches and other snacks together."

"Joey giving Seto a hard time about his lack of symmetry when it comes to food again?" Yūgi laughed as she followed the child inside. "This seems to happen on a constant basis. Has your father asked her to at least teach him how to make a sandwich without it falling over? Maybe then he can help her around the kitchen? It's worth a shot?"

Kisara laughed, shaking her head, "Nope. Daddy just leaves when Momma Joey says that he's in her way. He usually just goes back to his office to work on some of his projects when that happens."

Yūgi shared in the child's laughter as they entered the kitchen where Joey had still been working on the party snacks until she heard them enter. A large smile was plastered across her lips at the sight of her best friend, "Yūg! Glad ya made it. Kisara's been talkin' about ya being here nonstop since we left the apartment Monday. She was scared that you wouldn't show up."

Yūgi laughed, shaking her head right as her phone chimed in her bag; alerting her of a text message that had come through. Reaching into said bag, she pulled out the gold iPhone 6s plus and pressed the power button to turn on the screen. A grin crossed her features as she replied to the text message from Yami that had come through.

"I know that look," Joey said grinning at her best friend of twenty years. "Is it the Match guy again? You guys finally graduated from emails to text messages?"

"It was! I gave him my cellphone number last night," Yūgi squealed. Kisara took that as her queue to leave the two women alone; skipping out of the kitchen and up to her father's office. "He even accidentally called me and I answered, not thinking anything of it." She could feel the heat that had been there the night before rise up into her face again. "He told me that I had a beautiful voice when I answered. Joey I think I just about melted."

"Describe his voice to me," the sandy blonde said as she leaned against the counter, folding her arms across her chest. "Did he sound like a little kid? Or was his voice one of those husky, deep, sexy voices? You know, kinda like Money Bags up there?"

"Deep, husky, sexy, probably deeper than Seto's," Yūgi gushed. "I swear Joey, I just about melted when he spoke. And that picture of his, with his daughter. Joey I don't think I've ever seen someone so attractive! I hope I'm not being cat fished. You know how you can just go and take anyone's profile picture from any social media site and make a fake profile and make it seem like they're someone they're not."

"I guess we'll find out for sure when ya go out on that date with 'im on Wednesday," Joey teased. "I'm so proud of you Yūgi! You're well on your way to finding yourself a man. It's about time. I thought you were going to grow old alone with ten cats after I move out of the apartment."

"I think ten is pushing it but I probably would have been alone," Yūgi joked.

"You're way too beautiful to stay alone forever Yūg, and that's why I'm glad you're at least trying to date," Joey said, her head tilted to the side; the smile that was painted on her face growing brighter by the second. "Besides, that guy is lucky. Not the other way around."

"I don't know about that Joey," Yūgi disagreed lightly. "I'd say I'm the lucky one. If he's really what he claims himself to be, he could have any woman he wanted and he wants little ol' me. A twenty-eight-year-old OB/GYN Nurse who spends all her time watching Anime, reading mystery novels, playing with freakin' Duel Monsters cards when she's bored, and hanging out at the arcade when she's not pulling sixty to seventy hours at the hospital bringing lives into this world."

"Ah, there, that's why you're special," Joey pointed out. "And that's why he's fuckin' lucky Yūg. Don't put yourself down. You're special. Now help me get the rest of these sandwiches done before those other kids show up, yappin' about bein' hungry while they're outside playin' in the bouncy house."

Yūgi couldn't help the laugh that escaped her as she moved forward to help her best friend finish preparing the snacks for Kisara's party.

…

Yami glanced at the watch that rested on his wrist, noting that it was five minutes until the party started. As he had predicted, they had ended up in traffic and what should have been a fifteen-minute drive, turned into a thirty-five-minute drive. He didn't want to tell Hikari that he had told her so but… well the proof was in the time. He opened his door just as Hikari did, both of them stepping out of the SUV; Yami grabbing the present that they had gotten for Kisara.

"C'mon Hikari, we need to get in there before the party starts," Yami said as he held his hand out to his daughter for her to grab. She did, happily skipping alongside him as they made their way to the front door. If it weren't for the fact that there were so many cars that were out of place against his cousin's expensive, luxurious vehicles; he would have noticed a particular black Lexus that had been in a particular woman's profile photo on Match. "Kisara is probably pulling at her hair wondering where you are."

Hikari giggled, "I don't think so Daddy. All her friends are here too; I don't think that she noticed we hadn't made it yet."

"Sure she didn't," Yami chuckled as they reached the door; knocking on the wooden barrier. It only took a few seconds before the door swung open and a blur of sliverish-white whizzed past him and gathered his daughter into her arms. "Told you so."

"I'm so glad you're finally here Hikari!" Kisara squealed as the two jumped around in circles. "C'mon, I wanna introduce you to all my friends and Momma Joey's best friend! C'mon!"

Yami laughed as the two girls ran inside before he followed; catching his cousin in the foyer. "Are you avoiding all the children? Can't handle a gaggle of little kids running around your place?"

"Very funny Yami," Seto said; azure eyes rolling at his cousin's statement. "I was actually in my office; I'm heading out to the party now. I would suggest you get out there before…"

"Hikari, Kisara, be careful you'll run into…"

Joey's voice was cut off by a crash and a surprised squeak from a woman which sent Seto and Yami running. What they were met with was the sight of a woman standing up from the knocked over table, picking scrapes of pasta salad from her long, black and violet hair. Next to her were Hikari and Kisara, the latter profusely apologizing about knocking the woman over as Kisara stared down at her feet; sure that she would be in trouble when her father found out.

"What happened out here," Seto demanded as he strode over to the group; Joey meeting him half way as Yami followed behind. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," the woman said waving it off. For some reason that voice sounded distinctly familiar to Yami. "Really, it's fine." She looked down at Hikari, who seemed to be on the verge of tears. "Don't worry. I'm not hurt see? A little dirty maybe, but fine nonetheless."

"Hikari," her father called out to her, causing all of them to turn and look at him. It was then that a set of crimson and amethyst eyes widened when they landed on one another. "Yūgi?"

"Yami?"

Awkward silence enveloped the entire backyard, that is… until Joey spoke.

"Uh? What the heck is going on here?"

* * *

 **I wrote this chapter in about two hours. Because the muse was just too high for this. Also, I was writing it in anticipation of the next chapter of another amazing chapter that my best friend, my mentor, my Onee-sama is writing on here. C'mon 29** **th** **of August! I need you to get here sooner rather than later lol. Anyways, hopefully all you lovelies enjoyed. I'll try to update again soon!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Yūgi**

 **By: SheMeHerJay**

 **Chapter Three**

* * *

i do not own yu-gi-oh!.

* * *

 _Well this is awkward_ , she decided as she picked the last remnants of the pasta salad from her hair. _Definitely awkward. Meeting the man you've been in constant contact with over the last week face to face for the first time with pasta salad in your hair, nice first impression. On the bright side though, at least I know that I wasn't being cat fished._

"Well this is certainly interesting," the tri-colour haired man murmured, his head tilted to the side. He hadn't even noticed that his daughter had run to his side, blubbering an apology for knocking the woman over.

"Okay, a bit of explaining is definitely in order," Joey cut in as she helped her best friend pick the remnants from her now sticky hair.

"I would definitely agree," Seto pitched in. "How on earth do you know Yūgi, Yami?"

"This might be a conversation best suited for when we are not dealing with a gaggle of children and their parents staring at us," Yami commented, his hand absently running soothing circles over his daughter's back. "Besides, I think Yūgi would appreciate being able to get herself cleaned up before she's swarmed with questions."

"Yes I would appreciate that actually," Yūgi interjected. "My hair smells like pasta salad now... ack. And it's sticky."

"C'mon Yūg, I'll take ya upstairs and help ya get your hair washed," Joey offered as she ushered the shorter woman towards the entrance to the house. "And I might have a shirt up there that will fit you. One of my old ones that is, considerin' you're like four sizes smaller than I am."

"Thank you," the tri-colour haired woman said as she was led away, leaving the men, children, and other parents behind.

"You're definitely going to be explaining this one," Seto murmured before he turned to the little white haired girl that had attached herself to his leg. He could see the tears running down her cheeks. She probably thought she was going to be in trouble. "C'mon Kisara. Let's get you cleaned up."

"You as well Hikari," Yami said as he gently led his daughter behind his cousin. "You've got mustard all over your face."

"I really am sorry Daddy," Hikari whimpered as she followed her father inside the large home. "Kisara and I were just playing around and we didn't see her standing there and I ran into her and made her fall over by accident."

"I'm not the one you should apologize to Hikari," Yami said as they crossed the threshold. "I'm not the one that you knocked over. Though you should pull Miss Yūgi to the side before the day is over and properly apologize to her."

Hikari nodded, wiping away her tears as her father led her inside to the kitchen sink. Using a paper towel, he gently wiped the tears and mustard from her face.

"Are you mad at me Daddy," Hikari asked, blinking at the tri-colour haired man.

He wiped away the last of the mustard, brow furrowed, "Why would I be angry Hikari?"

"I dunno," the child shrugged. "I did knock Miss Yūgi over by playing around with Kisara. And she said she wasn't hurt but I saw a little bruise that might get bigger on her arm. I think she just said she wasn't hurt to make me and Kisara feel better about what happened. Plus you always tell me to be careful so that's why I thought you might be mad at me."

"Yes, you should always be careful lest things like this happen," Yami said as he threw the napkin away. "But you're a child and accidents happen. Just promise me you'll be a bit more careful next time, alright?"

Hikari nodded, her smile returning to her lips. "Okay Daddy."

"That's my girl," he said before pressing a kiss to her forehead before he was shooing her off to play again when Kisara and Seto walked into the kitchen once more. The two men watched as their children ran off before the brown hair turned to his cousin. Yami irked a brow when he started to speak before cutting him off. "You want to know how I knew Yūgi, right?"

"You know me all too well," Seto answered as his arms came to rest across his chest. "I'm waiting, whenever you're ready to start talking."

"Alright, remember when I told you about the woman that I met over Match earlier this week?" Yami asked to which Seto nodded once. He could tell that it was already beginning to click. Good, that would make explaining a lot easier. "Yūgi is that woman. What I didn't know, however, was that she knew Joey or yourself."

"When I said to find yourself a girlfriend, I wasn't expecting you to start dating someone close to my own," Seto commented, blinking slowly at his cousin. "I'm surprised she didn't realize who you were before now though."

"Maybe she didn't think about it," Yami shrugged as he leaned against the counter. "She probably thought that she was being cat fished. Which is understandable, all things considered. Especially these days since anyone can go on the internet anywhere and steal someone's photo to create a fake profile. I don't fault her for not realizing it before."

"I suppose you're right about that," Seto said before he turned to walk out the door. "Well, I guess we had better get back out there and watch those kids before someone's mother or father gets knocked into food or something next. The last thing I need is something else being destroyed and a lawsuit."

Yami chuckled as he followed his cousin out, "Alright."

...

"You have a lot of explaining to do, you know," Joey said as she towel dried her best friend's hair after thoroughly washing the pasta salad dressing out of it. "How in the heck do ya know Yami? I know for a fact that I've never introduced the two of you before."

"Well... remember the guy I told you that I met over the internet," Yūgi asked; a blush gracing the bridge of her nose.

"No... Yami is the Match guy?!" Joey practically shouted as she flopped back on the large California King sized bed; staring up at the ceiling. "I can't freakin' believe this! Yami, as in that Yami down stairs right now who is Seto's younger cousin, is the Match guy?!"

"...yep." Was the short reply from Yūgi as she pulled the t-shirt she had been given over her head; attempting to pull it down a bit further since it stopped just above her belly button. She would really prefer not to show any skin, especially since she knew that a certain someone was downstairs. "Of course I didn't realize this at first until I saw him... it should have been so obvious but you know how these things go when you're in lust."

"Fuckin' hell Yūg," Joey laughed. "Damn, that's some first impression that you left on him."

"Don't remind me," Yūgi said covering her face with her hands. "I'm already embarrassed enough as it is. I don't even know if I would be able to go down there and face him right now after that. I mean, I'm not mad at his daughter. She's way too adorable to stay mad at. But I don't know if I would be able to show my face around all those parents because they may point and laugh."

"Screw them," Joey dead panned. "If they were stupid enough to try and point and laugh at ya Yūg, I'd bash their skulls in. 'Sides, don't ya want to take this chance to get to know Yami a little bit at least before your date Wednesday? It wouldn't hurt anything. And I'm pretty sure that Hikari would like to apologize to you again for knockin' ya over."

"Joey I don't think you have to go to that extreme," Yūgi laughed albeit a bit nervously. "Bashing a parent's face in because they point and laugh to themselves isn't very nice."

"Pointin' and laughin' at someone because they got knocked over by a couple of kids ain't nice either," Joey countered lazily. Why was Yūgi making this so damned hard? If anyone so much as tried to laugh at her, a glare from herself, Seto, or even Yami would shut them up immediately.

Not to mention Kisara was _very_ vocal when it came to defending her self-appointed auntie. She and her Dad had, had an all-out battle of the words when he made a comment that she didn't particularly care for about Yūgi after they had first met. Joey, who was about to let Seto have it for talking about her best friend, had just sat back and let Kisara handle it while she just laughed. And well, let's just say that after that day, Seto never said anything bad about Yūgi again when Kisara was around… or ever for that matter.

"I promise ya Yūg, no one is going to say shit about you if they want to escape with their ears still attached," Joey continued. "I ain't havin' those bastards talk about you. Seto won't be havin' it because he doesn't want another tongue lashing from his daughter. Kisara for damn sure ain't havin' it because no one messes with her Aunt Yūgi. And, I'm almost certain that Yami will step in if anyone tries to say anything under their breath."

The sandy blonde grinned when she saw the blush that crept its way from the base of Yūgi's neck to the tips of her ears.

"He's also very vocal; especially when it comes to his distaste of someone picking on another person," Joey commented. "Plus, you promised Kisara you'd be here for her birthday so you definitely can't leave or stay confined in this house. You're all cleaned up now anyways so let's go enjoy this party as much as we possibly can. I was able to buy a case of wine coolers for us older folks so the alcohol should help."

"Alright, alright," Yūgi said throwing her hands up in defeat. "I'll go back down. C'mon, I'm pretty sure that Kisara's looking for me by now to make sure that I'm okay."

"At a girl," Joey said jumping up from the bed before the two women made their way out of the bedroom and back down to the backyard.

Yūgi was met with the sight of the children jumping around in the bouncy house while the parents sat among themselves, talking with each other about their children and the things that they do. And off to the side were Yami and Seto who were engaged in conversation with two other men that Yūgi hadn't seen before. She looked over at the group of mothers again and noticed two more women had joined, one holding what looked like a newborn baby and the other a young toddler.

She was about to ask who they were before she was tackled by a blur of silverfish white, making her slide back several inches.

"Aunt Yūgi! I'm glad that you're okay! I'm so sorry about that," Kisara blubbered, her tears renewed.

Yūgi couldn't help it. She laughed as she gently ran her fingers through the long, white, silky strands of hair. "Silly girl, I'm not mad at you. I'm perfectly fine. My hair was just a little bit sticky that's all. You and Hikari were playing, something that children do. I couldn't be angry with either one of you if I tried. You're both way too adorable to stay mad at."

"Really," the blue eyed child asked as she looked up at the tri-colour haired woman.

"Now would I lie to you Kisara," Yūgi asked to which the child shook her head in the negative. "Exactly, so don't worry about it alright? Besides, a pretty birthday princess like you shouldn't be crying at her own party, right?" Kisara nodded as Yūgi wiped her tears away with the back of her hand. "Now go on and play with your friends. Everything is okay."

"Okay," Kisara said, snapping back to her normal, perky self before she ran off again to join the other children in the bouncy house.

"Well, that takes care of that issue. Now, c'mon, let's go sit down somewhere. These shoes aren't exactly the most comfortable to be standing around in for long periods of time," Joey suggested, making a show of wiggling her foot around for emphasis.

Yūgi laughed, shaking her head at her best friend. "Alright. C'mon, it looks like there's a free table over there in the corner. Let's hurry up and get over there before someone else steals our table and you're forced to stand up in those shoes of yours. By the way, I never thought I would see you in a pair of dressy shoes like that. I'm used to you wearing flats or tennis shoes. Not a wedge. Would Kaiba happen to have something to do with the updated shoe wear?"

"Shut up, Yūg," Joey said blushing as they made their way to the table, sitting down across from one another. "I was just trying something new okay? I only bought them because I thought that they were cute."

If not for the look that she was receiving, Yūgi would have burst out laughing at her best friend's comment. Never in their twenty years of friendship had she ever heard Joey call a pair of shoes cute. Kaiba was definitely starting to get to her. "I'm sorry, I'm trying not to laugh but you've never used the words "cute" and "shoes" in the same sentence before. Kaiba really is changing you for the better, Joey."

"…I can't wait until the day you and Yami get together and he starts making you act all weird," Joey pouted, folding her arms across her chest. The pout didn't last long though because she caught a glimpse of a certain tri-colour haired man making his way towards them with his daughter at his side. An idea popped into her head like a light blob. "Oh, I almost forgot. I need to run upstairs and grab something really quick. Save my seat for me, will ya?"

Yūgi's brow furrowed at her friend's odd request; head tilted to the side slightly. "Okay… sure… go ahead."

"Great, be right back in a flash," Joey said before standing from her seat and shooting off towards the door; leaving her best friend to ponder what the hell was up with her.

 _She's been acting awful weird since she found out that Seto's cousin was the Match Guy_ , Yūgi thought to herself before a particular voice reached her ears.

"Is this seat taken," Yami, who had snuck up on her with Hikari, asked.

And that's when it all clicked for the tri-colour haired nurse. Joey had clearly seen him coming and made up the excuse to grab something to get away before he arrived, thus leaving Yūgi alone with the man. _I'm so going to kill her one of these days._ "Not at all. Go ahead and make yourself comfortable."

Fuck her life ten times running; this was definitely going to be interesting. She just hoped that she would live to see the end of this conversation.

* * *

 **Yay for awkwardness. Ahaha. Thank you to everyone who has fav/followed/reviewed this little story of mine. I greatly appreciate it!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Yūgi**

 **By: SheMeHerJay**

 **Chapter Four**

* * *

i do not own yu-gi-oh!.

* * *

And things were, yet again, extremely awkward as she sat across from the man that she met via Match. She was still trying to get over the fact that he was actually Seto Kaiba's cousin, not to mention that she was desperately trying to keep her mind from wandering to very… unsafe places. Like what he would look like outside of those jeans and that polo. The man was fucking hot in clothes. Outside of them he would probably look like a God. Or, how his hair would feel as she ran her fingers through it while he…

A mental palm slapped her in the face dead centre. She was trying not to have these thoughts, dammit. Not encourage them. The last thing she needed to do was make it even more awkward by blurting something very uncouth out of the blue; especially with the man's daughter sitting right there. She didn't want to scar the poor child for life with a very lude comment so she smartly pushed all those thoughts away; focusing all of her energy on listening to what he was saying and not how kissable his lips looked. Ah fuck, there she went again.

 _This is what six years alone does to you,_ she thought to herself. _Get it together_ _Yūgi and don't get all weird on him. He probably already looks at you strange considering the age difference. Plus, that wasn't the most dignified first meeting. Hot guy seeing geeky little you wearing pasta salad for hair decorations? Yeah… great first impression there._

"I certainly wasn't expecting to meet you so soon," Yami had said, shifting his daughter so that she sat comfortably on his knee. "I also wasn't expecting for you to know my cousin or his girlfriend. I'm surprised that neither of them have mentioned you before. I've held Joey's company on many occasions whenever she would attend those business galas on Seto's arm. And if she did, I must not have been paying very much attention at the time."

"I doubt I would make it into conversation in that type of setting," Yūgi laughed; Yami could feel the edges of his lips twitch upward into a smile at the bell like sound. "The life of a twenty-eight-year-old baby nurse isn't exactly the most remarkable thing. Nor would it be something someone attending a multi-billion-dollar business' gala would care to listen to even if her best friend mentioned her. I don't blame you for not knowing that I had any sort of connection to either of them."

"It seems we were both thrown for a loop then," Yami chuckled before he looked down at the little girl that was sitting quietly in his lap.

Yūgi couldn't help but notice how uncomfortable she looked. Was the girl still concerned that she would be angry with her for knocking her into that table? Sure her back hurt like hell from where she hit the table, but she and Kisara had been playing. It wasn't like they had done it on purpose. Not to mention the fact that she was more or less used to it considering how rough her cousins where whenever she had gone to visit them in her younger years.

"Kar? Is there something that you would like to say to Miss Yūgi?" Yami asked suddenly to which the little girl nodded.

He released his hold on her, allowing her feet to touch the ground before she shuffled over to where Yūgi was sitting. There was a smile that managed to sneak across Yūgi's lips. This little girl was absolutely precious; her eyes the same intense shade of crimson as her father's but much, much softer; almost doe like. She had clearly gotten her hair colour from Yami, the same crimson tipping the ends of her long mane and a shade brighter blonde creating her fringe. She reminded the tri-colour haired woman of an adorable little Barbie doll.

"Go on Kar." Yami encouraged from across the table.

Hikari's crimson eyes met Yūgi's amethyst ones, her arms reaching upward to wrap around the woman's waist. This time, a full blown smile did make it across the young nurse's lips as she laid a hand on top of the child's head.

"I'm really sorry for bumping into you earlier and making you fall into that table," Hikari apologized once again. "My Daddy always tells me that I should be mindful of where I'm running so that I don't hurt anyone but Kisara and I were having so much fun and we didn't see you standing there until it was too late. I really didn't mean to knock you over and give you that big bruise on your arm. I promise I would never try to intentionally hurt you."

"Hey, hey," the nurse said as she wiped the tears that were spilling from the young girl's eyes away, a gentle smile gracing her lips. "It's okay, I promise. It was an accident and accidents happen. Believe it or not, I used to be a little girl too, running into people and knocking them over. Of course that was a bajillion years ago but still. And just like I told Kisara, I'm not angry at either of you. You were just doing what little girls do. So it's okay, kay? Besides, I'm a tough girl even though I'm the size of a miniature Christmas tree."

This earned a snicker from both father and daughter which put Yūgi at ease. She was beginning to worry that this girl was going to continue to blame herself for an accident that could have happened to anyone at any time.

"But I've got plenty of cousins who like to rough house, not to mention I grew up with Joey who is way rougher than any guy I've ever known," she continued. "So don't worry yourself too much, I can definitely take it. Even if my hair was covered in pasta salad and it took a good twenty minutes to get that smell out."

There was another laugh, this time from all three of them. If one didn't know better, they would think Yami and Yūgi married with Hikari being the spawn of their love. But since the fact that they had met over Match had all been all but shouted to everyone that had attended the party, no one was stupid enough to think it.

"Now," Yūgi said as she wiped the remaining tears from the young girl's face, "How about you go play and stop worrying about that accident, hm? I'm completely fine, and neither you nor Kisara were hurt, so we can just pretend like it didn't happen." She saw Hikari glance at the bruise on her arm, the protest of not forgetting it when she had been bruised already forming on her lips. "And don't worry about that bruise. It'll be gone in a few days. It's not as bad as it looks, promise."

Hikari nodded before she hugged the woman again, "Thank you for not being mad at me."

"You're too cute to be mad at," Yūgi said honestly as she returned the hug before pulling back again. "Now go play with Kisara and her friends. It looks like they're waiting for you in the bouncy house."

Hikari nodded before she raced off, heading directly for the bouncy house; leaving the adults in a comfortable silence for several minutes before Yami broke it.

"Thank you for letting her get that out," Yami said, bringing her attention back to him. "She was concerned that you would be angry with her."

Gods above, she _really_ wished that he wouldn't smile at her like _that_. It just made him _that much sexier_ in her eyes and even harder to keep her thoughts from wandering in the wrong direction. She really didn't need to embarrass herself again in front of him. So silently, she willed him not to be that strikingly beautiful while just casually sitting there so that she was able to focus on simple conversation.

So, Yūgi shrugged it off for the accident that it was. "She and Kisara were playing. It's no big deal. Not to mention that I have had my fair share of tumbles when dealing with my cousins and Joey. I honestly hadn't noticed this bruise until Hikari pointed it out." She laughed lightly. "I'm not as fragile as I look."

His own chuckle mixed in with hers, "Clearly."

…

For the duration of the party, Yami and Yūgi had yet to separate, Joey had noticed. It had been a good five and a half hours since the incident with the pasta salad and after apologies were made and hair was cleaned, they had sat down at that table and talked while the children ran around; giggling like mad. The only times she had seen them separate was if one excused themselves to use the bathroom or Yami got up to check on Hikari like the dotting father that he was.

"Those two seem to like each other," Seto mused as he stood at Joey's side, his arms folded across his chest. "They seem to like each other a lot. They haven't been apart since you tricked Yūgi into sitting there alone because you had to "run and get something" earlier. That was actually really underhanded of you."

Joey shrugged. "She wasn't going to talk to him if I didn't. She would have made up some kind of excuse to avoid Yami if I had told her, "Hey, look who's coming. It's the Match guy who happens to be Seto's cousin and I think that he wants to talk to you. Oh, and he brought his daughter along so you guys be like a cute little family and talk about whatever the hell needs to be talked about". Yūgi can be painfully shy when she wants to be. Especially during awkward situations like this."

Seto gave a throaty chuckle, shaking his head from side to side. "That's still pretty evil, especially when you pull it on your best friend."

"Eh, I'm pretty sure Yūg will thank me in the long run," Joey said waving it off before they stepped off the back porch back into the yard. "She's comfortable now. I may have actually saved their date Wednesday. But, it's getting late. It's already almost eight at night and these kiddos need to get home and get ready for bed. There's this thing called school in the morning."

Seto nodded his agreement as he followed the younger woman. "Yeah, and then my head won't hurt so much. Kisara and Hikari being together is one thing. I can handle the level of noise they create. But add twenty or so other kid's voices plus their parents and you're just asking for me to develop a migraine."

Joey snorted before she winked suggestively, "I've got something that will help with that. You can have it when everyone's gone if you want."

Seto sputtered, coughing awkwardly for a moment as Joey laughed again before announcing that the party was over and guests could take any of the leftovers home that they wanted.

Yami glanced up momentarily when he heard the announcement before turning back to Yūgi. "Well, it looks like the party's over. I need to get Hikari home anyway, she's got school in the morning and it's almost her bed time." He stood, gesturing for his daughter to come over to him. "It was nice meeting you, Yūgi. I'll see you again Wednesday?"

Yūgi nodded just as Hikari came barreling into her father's leg, hugging his waist tightly. "That sounds like a plan to me. Have a good night, Yami. And you too Hikari."

The crimson eyed little girl beamed when Yūgi acknowledged her presence, "It was nice meeting you Miss Yūgi! You have a good night too."

Yūgi laughed, nodding her head before the father and daughter duo walked away; Hikari chatting animatedly about all the fun that she had today playing with Kisara and her friends and how she wanted to have a similar party for her birthday in the spring of next year.

"So, is he everything that you expected?" Joey's voice said suddenly, causing the tri-colour haired woman to practically jump out of her skin. She laughed when her best friend turned to her with wide, frightened amethyst eyes. "Sorry, did I scare you? You probably shouldn't space out like that Yūg. You never know who will sneak up on you when you do that."

"Making a little noise the next time you decide you're going to pop up on me like that would be great Joey," Yūgi requested; the embarrassment from being startled clear in her voice.

"Sure, but you didn't answer my question," Joey said as she assumed the seat that Yami had been sitting in. "Was he everything that you expected him to be? Because in the few instances that I met him, he seems like a cool, laid back kind of guy."

Yūgi had the decency to blush. "Joey he far exceeds my expectations by the millions. That's why we're keeping our date that we agreed on for Wednesday."

"That's good news," Joey said grinning. "You do know that you're going to have to tell me how that date goes after it's over right?"

"I was already planning on doing so," Yūgi laughed before checking the time on her watch. "I need to get going though. I promised my Grandpa that I would stop by after the shop closes tonight to check on him. He's been having a few problems with his back again."

"Alright, tell Gramps I said hi," Joey said as the two women stood. "I'll bring your shirt back to the apartment after I get it cleaned."

"Thanks Joey," Yūgi said before she grabbed her bag and made her way to the front of the house where her car was parked.

Throwing her bag into the passenger's seat, she slipped in and closed the door behind her just as the chime for a new text message coming through reached her ears. Pulling the phone from her bag, she looked to see a new message from Yami. There was a smile that graced her features as she read over it before hitting reply. Finished with her text message, she placed the phone in the cup holder before starting the car and heading off in the direction of her Grandfather's game shop.

…

 **Three Days Later**

"Soooo… are ya ready for your date with ol' Yami tonight, Yūg? From what I hear, the guy is a total romantic, and does the whole wine and dine thing right. Better than Seto does, if you can believe it." Joey teased, snickering as she lounged across her friend's bed; watching as she fiddled with her hair in her body length mirror. "I still can't get over the fact that he's actually the Match Guy you had been ranting and raving about all of last week. Hell, if you didn't make that profile I probably would have set you two up to meet. Then it wouldn't have been so embarrassing because you wouldn't have had pasta salad all in your hair or been knocked over by a couple rambunctious kids."

"If I had known he was Seto's cousin before Kisara's party, I would have asked you to bring him over and save myself from that embarrassment. Duh," Yūgi deadpanned; glancing back at the blonde through the mirror. "I honestly was not expecting to meet him so soon; and at Kisara's party no less. I honestly hadn't realized that he was related to Kaiba in way, shape, form, or fashion. If I had, we'd be having a completely different conversation right now."

"Yūg, the guy's last name is Sennen," Joey pointed out. "Seto's last name, before he was adopted by Gozaburo, was Sennen. Their fathers were twins. Which would technically make them half-brothers in a sense but we're just going to go with cousins to make it easier for us. How didn't you realize this before?"

"I never gave it much thought when he contacted me?" It sounded like more of a question than a statement coming from Yūgi as she shrugged. "I was distracted by how good looking he is, alright? Things didn't actually click until I saw him Sunday. And probably wouldn't have until if maybe he mentioned it while we're out at dinner tonight."

"Speaking of dinner," Joey said sitting up, the pillow she had been holding against her stomach resting on her thighs now; a wide grin spreading across her lips. "Where's Yami takin' ya Yūg? Did he tell ya? Because from the way that you're dressed right now…"

Yūgi glanced down at the simple form fitting black cocktail dress she was dawned in. Yami had told her to "dress semi-formal" when he texted her about their date earlier that morning. However, he hadn't mentioned exactly where it was that they were going. So, she had run to the nearest Kohl's and picked up this little ensemble earlier in the afternoon. "I have no idea. He just said to dress semi-formal and I didn't have anything to wear so I had to run and pick this up earlier this afternoon."

"So that's why you ran outta here in your pyjamas earlier," Joey asked; a hint of laughter reverberating in her throat. "I was wondering what the hell you were doing. All I heard was "I'll be right back Joey, bye" then the door slammed. And I honestly, barely made out what you said because you were talking so fast. It took a while for it to register… thankfully Serenity had heard you too and could somewhat make better sense of what you said than I did."

"Sorry, I was in a rush, you know I don't own fancy dresses and stuff," Yūgi defended. "Now help me with my hair. This stupid French Twist isn't working with me."

"We should've called Mai to do this," Joey laughed as she stood from the bed to help her best friend prepare for her date. "She's better at this crap than I am by far."

…

"Where ya goin' Daddy," Hikari asked as her feet swung back and forth, lightly kicking at the mattress she sat upon as she watched her father prepare for his evening. She was curious as to why he was getting all dressed up to leave. He never got that dressed up before unless he was going to one of those big Kaiba Corp. parties that he hated. "Is Uncle Seto throwing one of his fancy business parties again?"

"No," Yami answered as he tied his tie around his neck before smoothing his blazer over his shoulders. "I'm actually going to be having a night out with a friend. And you, young lady, are going to stay here with the baby sitter who should be by in a few seconds…"

It was right then that his phone alerted him that there was someone ringing the doorbell.

"Ah, there she is right now," Yami said gesturing for the child to get up off his bed. She did, running over to take her father's hand before they exited his bedroom; him closing the door behind him. They headed down the stairs together, coming to the door just as the bell rang again. Hikari did the honours of opening the door, revealing the young woman who looked to be no more than eighteen or nineteen years old standing there. "Isis, thank you again for coming over to watch Hikari."

"Of course Mr. Sennen, anything for a family friend," Isis said as she entered the home. "I was just surprised that you had called the other day. It's not often that you're out without Hikari. Special occasion?"

"Something like that. And we've been over this a million times, just call me Yami, alright?" Yami grinned before turning to his daughter. "Hikari I want you to behave yourself, do you understand?"

"Yes Daddy," Hikari nodded, smiling innocently at her father.

"You know her bed time and you have my cellphone number if there's an emergency," Yami said as he turned back to Isis. "I should be back by ten, eleven at the latest. Thanks again for watching after her for me Isis."

"Of course Yami, you have fun tonight," Isis said before he walked out the door as he grabbed the keys to his Bentley from the key rack. Isis turned to Hikari who was grinning up at her once the door closed behind him. "What do you want to do first Hikari?"

"Hmmm… how about we watch movies and eat popcorn?" Hikari suggested.

"Movies and popcorn sounds like a great idea," Isis agreed before taking the child's hand and leading her to the kitchen to get the popcorn started.

…

"I'm leaving Yūg," Joey called as she shouldered her duffle bag. "And Yami should be here soon. He did say seven right? It's ten minutes' till. You'd better hurry up!"

"Thank you Joey," Yūgi called back to her best friend. "You and Seto have fun, but not too much fun, okay? I'll see you this weekend."

"The same could be said for you and Yami," Joey chuckled before she left; closing and locking the door behind her. She made her way down to the red 2015 Toyota Corolla that was parked beside Yūgi's Lexus when the purr of an engine caught her attention. She turned to see a familiar black Bentley parked in one of the guest parking spaces before a familiar mop of hair exited the cab. "You're early, Yami. I figured that I'd be gone before you got here to pick her up."

Yami turned at the sound of her voice, waving in greeting to the sandy blonde. "Traffic wasn't as bad as I expected it to be on the way here. Would you happen to know if Yūgi is ready yet?"

"Almost, she was finishing up her makeup when I left," Joey answered before she gestured to the staircase that led to their shared apartment. "She should be done by now though if you go on up and knock on the door. Apartment 610, right up that set of stairs there."

"Thank you, Joey," Yami said before he turned to make his way up the steps.

"Treat her right Yami," she called after him suddenly.

Crimson eyes blinked, his head turning to look back at her, "I'm sorry?"

"Treat her right," Joey reiterated. "Yūg is tough when it comes to her exterior. But when it comes to her emotions, she's very fragile. Not to mention I'll kick your ass if you hurt her in any shape, way, form, or fashion." She turned to make her way to the driver's seat of her car. "I've been told that I have a hell of a left hook by many people." The baffled look on his face caused Joey to laugh again as she stepped into her car. "Remember what I said Yami. Treat her right and take care of her, she doesn't deserve to be screwed over the way her last boyfriend did her."

And then she started the car, backed out, and drove off, leaving Yami alone in the parking lot to think over what she had said to him. The last thing he wanted to do was screw Yūgi over. But in return, he wanted the same for his own heart. After everything he went through with his ex-wife, the last thing he needed was his heart to be broken again. And so, with the silent promise that he would never even dream of hurting the tri-colour haired woman upstairs, he made his way to the apartment and knocked on the door.

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 **Yay for updates! Hopefully you guys enjoyed this one. Also, if you need recommendations for good fics to read? I would suggest checking out Xhibit B's YamiYūgi content she has posted. She's amazing with the written word and you'll love her stories.**


	5. Chapter 5

Yūgi

By: SheMeHerJay

Chapter Five

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Yūgi glanced over her shoulder when she heard a knock on the front door before looking at the time on her phone. Yami wasn't due for a few more minutes and Joey had just left so who could have possibly been at her door?

Placing the foundation brush she had been holding down, Yūgi made her way out of her bedroom; heels clicking against the floor as she made her way to the door. She peeped out the peephole, a slight eep escaping her grasp at who was standing there. He was early and she wasn't ready.

I can't just leave him out there though, Yūgi mused to herself as she peeked out at the man standing in front of her door again. It's extremely rude and I know he knows that I'm here. Maybe he won't mind waiting for a few minutes while I finish my makeup?

So, she unlocked the door and pulled it opened. "You're a bit early. I'm almost ready, just a few more touches to my makeup. C'mon in."

She stepped to the side, allowing him to enter before she closed the door again. She bit her lip as she watched him glace around at the pictures that hung from the walls of herself and her friends back in high school and college.

"I'll be right back," Yūgi said before she turned to make her way back to her bathroom. "Make yourself comfortable, I shouldn't be long."

And then she disappeared into her room leaving Yami to his own devices.

Treat her right Yami.

Joey's words from earlier continued to echo in the back of his mind as he examined the photos of Yūgi and her friends. He was able to easily pick out the blonde that had promised to kick his ass if he hurt her. They appeared to be celebrating something… a birthday from the looks of it. The smiles that were on their faces were unguarded; happy even. He could feel the side of his mouth lift upward in a light smile.

"Ah, I remember that day," Yūgi said appearing by his side suddenly. "It was my twentieth birthday. Joey, Serenity, Tristan, my Grandpa, and Téa had thrown a surprise party for me. I came home from school that day and there they were with cake and ice cream. It was probably one of the best birthday's I've ever had."

"You all do look genuinely happy," Yami commented; his crimson stare still fixed on the photo. "I recognize Joey, but what happened to your other friends Tristan and Téa? Joey has never mentioned them."

"Téa moved to New York six months after graduating from university," Yūgi answered. "She dances on Broadway in a recurring role as Sarabi from The Lion King. But she does other minour roles for different productions here and there as well. Joey and I actually went to see her dance about two years ago. She's amazing. And as for Tristan, he married Joey's little sister about a year and a half ago. They're actually going to be welcoming a baby girl to the world in about two months. Serenity was just at the hospital this past Thursday for her appointment. She's positively glowing. And Joey's excited about being an aunt. Anyways, I'm all ready to go."

"Alright," he said offering his arm to her, "Let's get going. Our reservation is for seven-forty-five."

"Where exactly are we going?" Yūgi inquired as they left her apartment, Yami locking the door for her when she pulled out her keys before making their way down to his car. She couldn't help the gasp that escaped her grasp when she saw his car up close. "Wow, it's beautiful."

"Thank you," Yami chuckled, opening the door for her. She slipped into the comfort the leather seats provided, amethyst eyes taking in the interior as Yami joined her by taking the driver's seat. "She was a birthday gift from Seto this year. I guess when you turn thirty-two that warrants your cousin buying you an expensive car as a present."

Yūgi laughed, "It is when your cousin is Seto Kaiba. You should see all the lavish gifts he's bestowed upon Joey for the last two years of their relationship."

"I can only imagine," the tri-colour haired male chuckled, shaking his head.

...

When she and Yami stepped into the elegant restaurant, Yūgi couldn't help looking around in childlike wonder. Beautiful authentic crystal chandeliers hung overhead by the dozens, showering the large room in colourful rainbows. The cloths on the tables that were scattered about the space looked to be made from the finest silk, topped with a mantle that held several white candles waiting to be lit.

"Wow," was the only coherent word that Yūgi managed to squeak out, causing her date to chuckle a bit by her side.

"That was my reaction as well the first time I came here," Yami assured her. "C'mon, looks like the hostess is back at her post."

Yūgi nodded, following his lead to the hostess' stand. She turned when she heard the click of Yūgi's heels behind her, a bright smile coming across her features. "Welcome to Bella's. Did you have a reservation?"

"Yes," Yami answered with a nod. "Reservation for two under the last name Sennen."

"Sennen, Sennen, Sennen," the hostess mumbled to herself as she looked over the list that rested on the podium before she grinned and grabbed two menus. "Aha, here we are. If you folks would follow me, I'll lead you to your table."

Yami nodded, gesturing for the blonde to lead the way before he and Yūgi followed. They were seated at a table in the centre of the room, Yami pulling the chair out for Yūgi as the hostess lit the candles before she turned to them with another smile. "Your waiter for the evening will be Jiro. He'll be right with you momentarily. Enjoy your evening."

Yūgi's brow quirked, it couldn't possibly be her ex that the younger woman was talking about, could it? Nah, Jiro was a common name; she was working herself up over nothing.

"Thank you," Yami said before the woman walked away and his attention was turned to Yūgi who was looking down at her menu.

He took this time to admire her beauty up close. Her face still looked a bit babyish, despite her being in her late twenties, making her look a bit younger than she actually was. Her expressive amethyst eyes, bright and inviting. Her picture that he had seen on Match did her no justice when one would see her in person. And it made him curious, what on earth could her last boyfriend had left her for? He wanted to ask, he really did, but he found it to be intrusive so he buried the urge to do so; choosing instead to look at his own menu and wait for her to start the conversation.

Several long minutes of comfortable silence passed by between the two tri-colour haired adults before someone walked over to them, clearing his throat to gain their attention. Both Yami and Yūgi looked up at the man, the latter shrinking back slightly. Why he was here, she would never know. But she was praying on the inside that he didn't recognize her at all. The last thing she wanted to do was deal with her ex-boyfriend; especially while she was on a date with a guy who was probably twenty times better than he could ever dream of being.

"Welcome Bella's, my name is Jiro and I'll be your server for this evening," the brown hair said as he placed a menu in front of Yami before turning to Yūgi; stopping dead in his tracks. Both stared at one another wide eyed before he spoke. "Yūgi?"

"Well, this isn't awkward at all," Yūgi muttered more so to herself than anyone else before pasting on a faux smile. "Jiro, fancy running into you here. How's your girlfriend? And the baby? Doing well I hope?"

Yami, however, could only look from his date to the waiter, obviously confused by the exchange. "Uh? Anyone want to fill me in here? You two know each other?"

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 **And boom, there goes the ex-boyfriend. Remember he was mentioned in an earlier chapter slightly. So sorry it took me so long to get this out and the fact that it's so short but, it's just building up to inevitable tension that will come down the road. Anyways, reviews are love. I hope to have another chapter soon if writer's block doesn't rear its ugly head in again.**


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